At Central Catholic, focus is on what really matters

Sarah Schneider (middle) and Arielle Bradford (right) help out at the Nike Special Olympics Youth Games.

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Graduation ceremonies for the class of 2011 from Central Catholic High are set for 11 a.m. Saturday, June 11, at the University of Portland.

Valedictorian is Sarah Owens and co-salutatorians are Natalie Ceciliani and Rick Sullivan.

A lot of people have reasons to be proud of the graduating class. Out of a pool of 16,000 students, Pennilyn Stahl was named a National Merit Finalist, Owens was named a National Merit Semi-Finalist, Nathan Holder and Raven McClendon scored in the top three percent of more than 160,000 African American students in the National Achievement Scholarship Program, and seven other students were recognized as Commended Students in the National Merit Scholarship Program.

Football defensive lineman Brennan Scarlett was chosen to represent Oregon in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, David Carr was the player of the year in the Mount Hood Conference in basketball, and the volleyball team took the state title for the second year in a row. Boys cross country finished second in the state, boys’ basketball finished third in the state, and multiple conference championships were awarded to this year’s teams.

While sports and academics make Central Catholic a strong school, students' commitment to service makes them unique. This year’s seniors have performed more than 25,000 hours of community service since they began four years ago. They have completed service in states across the nation, and have served in Brazil, Tanzania, Ethiopia and Mexico.

Over the last four years, senior Sarah Schneider has been a model participant in Central Catholic’s Christian Service Program. As a freshman, Sarah completed her service requirements with projects at the Providence Prom for youths with disabilities and the Special Olympics Youth Games, and continued to serve throughout the year at various local organizations. She was active with the March of Dimes campaign during her sophomore year, and became a regular supporter of the Autistic Children’s Art Program, and the Mother and Child Education Center.

During her junior and senior years, she continued relationships with the organizations that she had served with in the past and began volunteering at Rose Haven and the Downtown Chapel, and participated in the Portland Plunge.

“When I see someone hurting or suffering, my heart goes out to them and I try to help them the best I can,” Schneider said.